I feel good, because I haven't requested any books from Netgalley! I'm currently trying to read all the e-ARCS I have and I want to continue reading my own TBR-pile. I couldn't resist buying these books though, because of their bargain prices.

With language that is both lyrical and distinctly her own, Francesca Lia Block turns nine fairy tales inside out. Escaping the poisoned apple, Snow frees herself from possession to find the truth of love in an unexpected place. A club girl from L.A., awakening from a long sleep to the memories of her past, finally finds release from its curse. And Beauty learns that Beasts can understand more than men. Within these singular, timeless landscapes, the brutal and the magical collide, and the heroine triumphs because of the strength she finds in a pen, a paintbrush, a lover, a friend, a mother, and finally, in herself.

Rating:

The only reason why I managed to read this book was because of the shortness of the stories. I kept hoping that one of them was good, but I was disappointed by all. The first story is by far the best one. It’s a retelling of Snow White and it’s the only one with a fairytale feeling. There is still something strange going on, because her mother’s new husband is the one who awakes her with a kiss..

The one from Beauty and the Beast wasn’t that bad either (otherwise I would have been very sad). Beauty is starting to turn into a beast and when he is starting to change into a human, she is a bit disappointed. That was a fun twist.

All the others were strange and not what I expected. There are several stories about rape, there is one with a drug addiction; not really stories you would expect in a fairytale retelling. It’s so harsh and realistic. I want magic, faeries, romance – hell, I even want instant-love. There is no fun in a retelling where Sleeping Beauty is made addicted to opium and where she is used by several men at the same time for pornographic photos. That is just wrong in my eyes and it doesn’t do justice to the real story.

Another thing that also bothered me was the fact that there are no quotation marks. It’s very confusing and I was sometimes lost in the conversations. The only positive thing I can think of is that I like the cover. It’s a shame that it doesn’t match the inside. The high ratings on Goodreads are a mystery to me.. And I don't think I will be reading anything from this author soon.

Q:Tell us about the most emotional scene you’ve ever read in a book – and how did you react?

After reading this question, I immediately thought of 3 different scenes that broke my heart.

1. The death of a character I grew to love in The Book Thief from Markus Zusak. Everybody who has read this book; I think you know who I'm talking about.
2. SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T READ HP (and if that is you, go read it!) The death of Severus Snape, my all time favorite character from Harry Potter from J.K Rowling. WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME, ROWLING? :'( And his chapters are gorgeous.

3. The ending from Tiger Lily from Jodi Lynn Anderson, especially the letter from Peter Pan to Tiger Lily. I knew how it would end, but I didn't want it to happen.

I cried on the inside and I was close in real crying, because I definitely had tears in my eyes :p I'm so weak sometimes. The next thing I did was talking about these scenes to everbody - several times. I think I drove my sister and boyfriend nuts, haha.

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials--engineered organic beings identical to humans--has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out. Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what's left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she's not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them--connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

Rating:

Finally a dystopian book with a good world-building. We get a lot of background story without an information dump. The world slowly unravels in the book and I liked how believable it was. The human race is dying after the war against the Partials and the release of the RM virus. Only a part of the human race was immune and they are together on Long Island where they live with the constant treat of attack from Partials or the resistance group called The Voice.

Title: Scarlet moon; A retelling of “Little Red Riding Hood.”Author: Debbie Viguié.Pages: 176.Published: April 6th 2004.Publisher: Simon Pulse.Sort: Part of the ‘Once upon a time’ series.

Ruth's grandmother lives in the forest, banished there for the "evil" that the townsfolk believed she practiced. But if studying the stars, learning about nature, and dreaming of flying is evil, then Ruth is guilty of it too. Whenever Ruth took food and supplies to her grandmother, she would sit with the old woman for hours, listening and learning. When she wasn't in the woods, Ruth was learning the trade of her father, a blacksmith, now that her brother would never return from the Crusades. Amidst those dark days, a new man enters Ruth's life. William is a noble with a hot temper and a bad name, and he makes her shiver. But the young man is prey to his heritage, a curse placed on his family ages ago, and each male of the family has strange blood running in his veins. Now Ruth must come face-to-face with his destiny at Grandma's house.

Rating:

Oh man, this was disappointing. Red Riding Hood is a great concept, but Viguié didn’t do this tale any justice. The story has no real point; it seemed so useless. We know the identity of the wolf from the beginning (it’s already told in the blurb) and the ending is so lame!

Title: Shadow and bone.Author: Leigh Bardugo.Pages: 358. Published: June 5th 2012.Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)Sort: Part one of ‘The Grisha’Source: Won in a giveaway.

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling. Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha…and the secrets of her heart.

Rating:

First impression: WOW. Why did I wait so long? From the first chapter I was hooked to this exciting story. This book also features one of my favorite things: a map! If you haven’t read this book, please, do yourself a favour and get a copy! Because this is AMAZING.

Now, in the wake of the Headmaster's sudden death, the whole academy is in turmoil, and Ophelia can no longer ignore the fae. Especially once she starts seeing the Headmaster's ghosts- two of them- on the school grounds.

YOU KNOW HOW THIS STORY ENDS.Yet even in the face of certain death, Ophelia has a choice to make- and a promise to keep. She is not the girl others want her to be. But in Dot Hutchison's dark and sensuous debut novel, the name "Ophelia" is as deeply, painfully, tragically real as "Hamlet".

Historical Fiction, adult.Carolyn Meyer – Beauty’s daughter: the story of Hermione and Helen of Troy.
Expected publication: October 8th 2013 by Harcourt Children's Books.The Spartan princess Hermione is the daughter of Helen, who is known as the most beautiful woman in the ancient world. When Helen runs off to Troy with the handsome young Prince Paris, Hermione's father, King Menelaus, erupts in fury. He amasses a thousand ships and sails for Troy, determined to reclaim Helen. This is the beginning of the Trojan War. For the next ten years, young Hermione lives outside the walls of Troy and is a witness to the battles that result in the death of heroes on both sides. Can she ever forgive her mother for creating such chaos? And will Hermione find her own love and her own place in the world?Historical Fiction, YA.Sarah Zettel – A most dangerous deception.
Expected publication: November 5th 2013 by Harcourt Children's Books.

A warning to all young ladies of delicate breeding who wish to embark upon lives of adventure: Don't.

Sixteen-year-old Peggy is a well-bred orphan who is coerced into posing as a lady in waiting at the palace of King George I. Life is grand, until Peggy starts to suspect that the girl she's impersonating might have been murdered. Unless Peggy can discover the truth, she might be doomed to the same terrible fate. But in a court of shadows and intrigue, anyone could be a spy—perhaps even the handsome young artist with whom Peggy is falling in love.
What do you think? And don't forget to leave a link to your WoW pick!

Title: The sevenfold spell.Author: Tia Nevitt.Pages: 97.Published: September 27th 2010 by Carina Press.Sort: Part one of ‘Accidental Enchantments.’
Review Part two: The magic mirror and the seventh dwarf.

Have you ever wondered what happens to the other people in the fairy tale? Things look grim for Talia and her mother. By royal proclamation, the constables and those annoying "good" fairies have taken away their livelihood by confiscating their spinning wheel. Something to do with a curse on the princess, they said. Not every young lady has a fairy godmother rushing to her rescue. Without the promise of an income from spinning, Talia's prospects for marriage disappear, and she and her mother face destitution. Past caring about breaking an arbitrary and cruel law, rebellious Talia determines to build a new spinning wheel, the only one in the nation--which plays right into the evil fairy's diabolical plan. Talia discovers that finding a happy ending requires sacrifice. But is it a sacrifice she's willing to make?

Rating:

This book was so different than I expected. After really enjoying part two, I decided to pick this one up. You can see that I was disappointed by this story. It's almost as if it was written by another author. The magical feeling was gone and replaced by something that doesn't fit a fairytale.

'Mel on reading' is a little feature I created as part of my Fairytale news. It's my way to show my thoughts on topics that go from pet peeves in reading to my favorite things in books.

I think everybody is now aware of the fact that Google Reader is going to quit. In July it is no longer available, so I decided to take a look at different options. Thanks to this post from Bewitched Bookworms, I’m now going to use Bloglovin’ as a new follower option. You can find the button in the sidebar or you can click on this link: follow The Daily Prophecy to go straight to the subscription option.

Title: Dust girl.Author: Sarah Zettel.Pages: 304.Published: June 26th 2012.Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers.Sort: Part one of ‘The American fairy trilogy’

Callie LeRoux lives in Slow Run, Kansas, helping her mother run their small hotel and trying not to think about the father she’s never met. Lately all of her energy is spent battling the constant storms plaguing the Dust Bowl and their effects on her health. Callie is left alone when her mother goes missing in a dust storm. Her only hope comes from a mysterious man offering a few clues about her destiny and the path she must take to find her parents in “the golden hills of the west”: California. Along the way she meets Jack, a young hobo boy who is happy to keep her company—there are dangerous, desperate people at every turn. And there’s also an otherworldly threat to Callie. Warring fae factions, attached to the creative communities of American society, are very much aware of the role this half-mortal, half-fae teenage girl plays in their fate.

Rating:

“I thought maybe I could just get away from everything. But you can't get away from a thing that's your own fault.”

From the beginning I was sucked into the story of Callie. She lives in Slow Run with her mother in a small hotel. The constant storms are causing health problems for Callie, but her mother refuses to leave. Year ago their father left them, but he promised to return one day and her mother is holding tight to that promise.

When one of the worst dust storms comes up, Callie’s mother disappears. That is when Callie starts to find out that she isn’t just a girl. She is part of a prophecy and the two Faerie courts – Seelie and Unseelie – are both looking for her. Together with Jack, a boy she releases out of jail, Callie is heading for the golden hills of the west; California. Her parents are supposed to be there and she will do anything to safe her mother. On their way, they encounter dangerous people and it’s hard to find out who they can trust.

Prince Richard is cursed. Enslaved to a magic mirror, he must truthfully answer the evil queen when she uses it to call on him. To keep from betraying innocents, Richard wanders the countryside and avoids people. All her life, Gretchen has been teased for being small. When she hears of a hidden farm populated by little people like her, she sets out to find it—and is welcomed by the mostly male inhabitants. Lars in particular woos her with his gentle kindness and quiet strength. Danger looms when Gretchen meets a runaway princess and offers her shelter at the Little Farm. Wandering nearby, Richard instantly falls in love with the beautiful princess, and is later compelled to tell the queen that she is not the fairest of them all. Enraged, the queen vows to find them and destroy them. If either Gretchen or Richard are to have their happy endings, they must team up to break the mirror's spell before the queen kills them all…

Rating:

This book was very entertaining and can be read as a stand-alone. I’m definitely going to check out the first book, The Sevenfold spell.

It all starts with two separate stories. Richard is connected to the mirror from The Evil Queen of Snow White (whose name is Ange here). She can ask him three questions every day and he must answer them with the truth. He is very clever in giving useless answers. I liked the way he tricked her into wasting her questions. Richard wants to slip into the castle to break the mirror, so he is free from the curse. That is how he sees Ange, a girl he met somewhere in the past. When the Queen wants to kill her, Richard warns the girl and Ange flees to a place she visits often; a dwarf farm.

This brings us to the other story. Gretchen has been teased all her life for being small. I respected her for the way she deals with the bad treatment. When she hears the story of a farm populated by little people, she decides to go there to find a husband. Lars is the lucky one. I was so happy that there was no instant-love. They are attracted to each other, but their feelings got enough time to feel realistic. Lars is a sweetheart and he makes Gretchen feel pretty. Her character development was great and it was good to see that she starts to realize that she is beautiful the way she is. Another good aspect was her family. Gretchen is 27 and she lives with her parents. They are very supportive and caring. They accept and love her for who she is.

I liked the way these two stories came together. The plot was interesting and there is a constant pace. Everything happened in the right time and I was never bored. The writing-style was quick, easy and had that old fairytalish feeling. The only thing that made this book a bit harsh is the fact that a character is trying to rape Gretchen. I think that this book is a mix between YA and Adult. If you are looking for something new when it comes to fairytales, this is the book you want to pick up.

I’m going to stick with physical books I already have and need to read as soon as possible. This makes it a bit easier for me. Clicking on the covers will bring you to GR.

I bought Melina Marchetta - Finnikin of the Rock in January at a book fair after reading a lot of positive reviews. I’m a huge, huge fan of Juliet Marillier so I can’t wait to read Shadowfell. I don’t know why I still haven’t read it. Markus Heitz - Oneiros (one of my favorite authors) sounds incredibly good.

I haven’t read the original story about Frankenstein (I do have a copy somewhere), but Kenneth Oppell’s – This dark endeavour sounds interesting. I love the font! I was disappointed by the third book from The Mortal Instruments, but I’ve heard great things about this series. I hope I like the MC better. Jodi Picoult & Samantha van Leer – Between the lines is also categorized in the fairytales genre, so I’m looking forward to try it out.

Christine Cody – Bloodlands was an impulsive buy. I saw a very cheap copy in a second-hand bookstore and it sounds good. A dystopian story with vampires, you can’t go wrong with that. I love fantasy, so I think I will love Cinda Williams Chima’s – The Demon King. This is the Dutch cover edition I have, they are pretty! Neil Gaiman – Mirrors and smoke contains thirty short stories. I hope they are as good as his other work.

And last but not least: Philippa Gregory – The Red Queen, part two of the cousins war. I’m sometimes so happy that I get to pick between the English or Dutch version, because I can choose the prettiest cover. I definitely prefer my Dutch cover edition!